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Alexander Verdun
'''Grand Marshal Alexander Verdun, Viscount of Everstill, '''is a nobleman hailing from the Redridge Mountains of the Kingdom of Stormwind. In his near 30-year service in the military of the Grand Alliance he leaves a decorated legacy, being a recipient of the Alliance Legion of Valor for instances of valor in two different wars. He is one of the few individuals to have received the decoration from both King Varian Wrynn at the conclusion of the War Against the Iron Horde as well as King Anduin Wrynn during the Third Burning Legion Invasion of Azeroth. Alexander was born just before the First War erupted into the Verdun family; a small, but wealthy and influential County within the Redridge Mountains. Unlike other noble houses that were expected to learn swordsmanship and be able to be called upon to serve the King, the Verdun lineage was a pacifist household, believing swordsmanship and violence to be immoral. They instead focused on trade and used their proximity to the Three Corners to have a great influence on both imports and exports to the capital. Redridge fell to the Orcs when Alexander was at a very young age, yet it had a profound effect on him, cementing a hatred of the Orcs within him. He often dreams of the Orcs that chased his family as they fled as Stormwind soldiers kept them at bay for just enough time. He and his family fled to Lordaeron along with the other Stormwind refugees before they relocated to Alterac where he would spend most of his formative years. Upon reaching a suitable age as a young teen, Alexander enlisted behind his father's back as Alliance forces recruited for a counterattack from Lordaeron. As a result, he was officially denounced from his pacifist family for the majority of his life until he finally reunited and reconciled with his family upon his return from Draenor, almost 30 years after his disowning. Early LifeCategory:CharactersCategory:HumanCategory:House of VerdunCategory:SoldiersCategory:Knights Alexander was the firstborn son born to Braxton Verdun and his wife, Madeline Abbott-Verdun in their family manor in Everstill County of the Redridge Mountains. The Verduns were a noble family that focused all of their efforts on trade and truly despised violence. As a result of their beliefs, the vast majority of the Verdun lineage never learned how to wield a sword, quite different from other noble houses of their time which were expected to offer their sword in service to the King should the need arise. Upon the fall of Redridge to the Orcs during the First War, Alexander's grandfather, the patriarch, was slain while the rest of the family retreated to Stormwind. As the Orcs pushed even further to Stormwind, Alexander and the family, like the majority of Stormwind refugees, fled north to Lordaeron. With the brutish acts of the Horde laid bare for them to see, the Verdun lineage only strengthened their beliefs in the immorality of any form of violence. After several months in dissatisfaction in Lordaeron, the family relocated to Alterac to stay with a fellow trading family. While in Alterac, Alexander was raised with the proper education expected of a nobleman's son. He learned how to read and write, etiquette, horsemanship, and other skillsets that were expected of him, with the exception of how to wield a sword. Along with these teachings, he was also force fed the belief that any form of violence, even in self-defense, was a form of rejecting the Holy Light. Even with these teachings forced upon him, he would always admire the soldiers of Lordaeron, believing them to be courageous to face the Orcish Horde and also believing their violence to be for a just cause. He was described as a child with a mild temperament, never seeming to be very emotional or passionate in anything he did; however, as he got older, people would note his attitude seemed to gradually worsen as he became disillusioned with the pacifist propaganda he was taught. His regard toward his family gradually lessened until he finally became aware of his disillusionment. As soon as he came of age as a young teen, he enlisted into the Lordaeron military behind his father's back in order to retake his homeland. Upon his father being notified, he was disowned from the family, thus stripping him of the honorary title of Viscount, a courtesty title granted to the first born son of a Count or Marquess. Service History Second War While the rest of the Verdun household stayed in Alterac and Lordaeron for the duration of the war, Alexander fought with the rest of the Lordaeron forces against the Orcish Horde. It was during this time that he caught the eyes of Lord Cathael Adamar, who believed the young Alexander to be a promising knight. Lord Adamar chose him to become his squire, knowing full well his noble heritage and the household's pacifist beliefs. The Lord mentored Alexander well, teaching him the intricacies of swordsmanship and knighthood, grooming him to become a knight. As his training progressed, he continued to fight alongside his master in the battlefields, culminating in aiding the rest of the Alliance forces in retaking Stormwind from the Orcs. After the war concluded, Lord Adamar deemed Alexander's training to be complete, knighting him as Sir Alexander the Warmongering for his willingness to serve and cut ties with his family. After the Reclamation of the Kingdom of Stormwind With the conclusion of the Second War, Alexander was granted a small piece of land in Elwynn where he stayed for several years in order to help maintain order and rebuild the Kingdom. He remained, not participating in any major conflict until the War against the Lich King. War against the Lich King With the Undead Scourge invading Stormwind, Alexander once again participated in defending the city. The past several years proved to be fruitful for his training as his swordsmanship had increased drastically. When it became known that the Lich King had once again become a threat to Azeroth, he began to prepare for the invasion on Northrend. He was sent to Northrend rather late, only arriving when Wintergarde Keep had already been secured and required aid to hold it from the Scourge. He remained there in a desperate attempt to fend off the undead as Horde and Alliance heroes entered and later conquered the necropolis, Naxxramas. With Naxxramas finally quelled, he was sent to Angrathar, the Wrathgate like the majority of Wintergarde's defenders. As luck would have it, when the Forsaken traitors doused both Alliance and Horde armies with their Forsaken Blight, he was upon the hill alongside Azeroth's heroes, manning the tower. When King Varian Wrynn joined the forward forces on their march against Arthas in Icecrown months later, Alexander followed. During the Siege of Icecrown Citadel, Alexander fought on the backline, holding off the Scourge as heroes climbed the Citadel to defeat the Lich King's lieutenants, and eventually Arthas himself. With the conclusion of the War against the Lich King, Alexander returned to Stormwind, receiving a promotion within the ranks to the rank of Knight-Lieutenant. The Cataclysm and the War against the Twilight's Hammer With Deathwing's initiation of the Cataclysm, Alexander was ordered to remain in Stormwind in order to fend off the cultists of the Twilight's Hammer that decided to attack the city itself. Besides having a brief moment of aiding heroes with their investigation of cultists that had infiltrated the ranks of Stormwind, he had very little impact during this conflict. Alliance-Horde War: The Pandaria Campaign When the continent of Pandaria cleared, Alexander was held back while Alliance heroes cleared the path for the Stormwind Navy to land on the beaches of the Krasarang Wilds. With Operation: Shieldwall occurring, he was sent to the front lines of Pandaria where he served until near the end of the campaign. As a result of the deaths of several of his commanding officers, Alexander was deemed fit to be field promoted several times, concluding the Campaign in Pandaria at the rank of Commander, as well as being granted the honorary title of Knight-Champion of Stormwind for his valor and combat prowess. Tournament of Ages 34 LC During the Pandaria Campaign, Alexander competed in the Tournament of Ages, an annual competition at the Argent Tournament Grounds in Northrend. During the one week ceasefire, Alexander participated in the Tournament of Might, a dueling tournament dedicated to warriors. He performed well, obtaining Silver. War against the Iron Horde Upon the invasion of the Iron Horde into Azeroth, Alexander was sent to the front lines at the Dark Portal, vowing to never allow another Orcish Horde to take Stormwind again like they had in the First War. He and the men under his command, alongside Azeroth's heroes were able to subdue the invasion and eventually traverse through the portal to mount a counter-attack. Once through the portal, he was separated from the group, relying on survival tactics and sheer will to survive the jungles. For days, if not weeks, he traversed the jungles until he was rescued and brought to Stormshield. He took upon a post as a Commander of the forces of Wrynn's Vanguard in Alliance-Horde conflict in Ashran. At the conclusion of the Draenor Campaign, High Command deemed it valuable to promote Alexander to the rank of Field Marshal in order to continue their success against the Horde forces and other world calamities. Reconciliation and the Order of EverstillCategory:Stormwind PeerageCategory:WarriorsCategory:CharactersCategory:House of VerdunCategory:HumanCategory:SoldiersCategory:KnightsCategory:Alliance OfficersCategory:Wrynn's Vanguard After serving in Ashran for an extended period of time, Alexander was rotated back to Stormwind for a month or two of leave. It was at this point that he decided to contact his family, who had never heard from him again after he left them to retake Stormwind. Upon locating them in Everstill County, Alexander was surprised to find that his father was overjoyed he had returned, believing him slain in battle after so many years. In the time he had been serving the Alliance, his father's opinions of soldiers had changed, now believing those who serve, especially knights, to be the most honorable figures in the Alliance. With his return, his father renamed him as the Viscount of Everstill, thus naming him as the heir of the County. Upon reconciling with his father, Alexander was instrumental in the formation of the Order of the Knights of Everstill, an order of knights that act as holy militants of the Church of the Holy Light, and serve the King faithfully in the Redridge Mountains. The Order may be called upon by the Church, the King of Stormwind, or the current head of the House of Verdun in a time of need. With time, the Order would become one of the Alliance's most decorated knight orders, proving to be the home of not one, not two, but three recipients of the Alliance Legion of Valor. A feat quite unimaginable when most other knight orders do not have a single Legion of Valor recipient, much less two. A few other notable knights within the order include: Field Marshal Kavid Thorson, Hero of the Alliance, Field Marshal Korben Rivers, Hero of the Alliance, Marshal Clarence Cunningham, and Commander Garion Magnus. Tournament of Ages 35 LC During the Draenor Campaign, Alexander once again competed in the Tournament of Ages. In the double elimination duels, he was bested by fellow Order member Sir Kavid Thorson in the third round, forcing him into the second bracket. In this bracket, he bested three others to challenge Sir Kavid once more in the finals where he was defeated once more after a lengthy thirty minute duel. First Alliance Legion of Valor For an incredible display of valor that he performed during the final campaign of the Draenor Campaign in the Jungles of Tanaan, he was nominated by both his men and the late Grand Marshal Acele Walkinson to receive the Alliance Legion of Valor. The nomination was reviewed by Alliance High Command and later approved. On the 2nd of August in the year 36 LC, he was presented before King Varian Wrynn where he was awarded the prestigious decoration. It would not be known until months later, that he and fellow recipient Kavid Thorson would be two of the last recipients to receive the decoration from King Varian before his death. Third Burning Legion Invasion of Azeroth With the invasions of the Burning Legion, Alexander was ordered to aid in the defense of Westfall, tasked to hold the line to prevent the Legion from advancing any closer to the capital, Stormwind. He and the 9th Division, a relatively small group of 10,000 men that had mostly been together during the conflict on Ashran and later in the Tanaan Jungles in Draenor, held the line admirably, holding off the Legion from encroaching into Elwynn until the invasions ended. However, upon the end of the invasions, it would be realized that communications between High Command and the Field Marshal's Division had ceased. Upon further investigations to the battlefield where they had been reported last, SI:7 agents and investigators under the orders of His Majesty, Anduin Wrynn found only the smoldering remains of the demons of the Burning Legion, without a single humanoid corpse or living soul found. After a grueling campaign by Alliance forces for months, the Field Marshal was rescued upon the Broken Shores, found to have been tortured by Inquisitors for an extensive amount of time. Of the roughly 10,000 men of the 9th Division, only a handful were left, many of which were granted a several month leave in order to recover. Though battered and beaten, Alexander continued to work towards recovering and regaining battle ready status. With the Field Marshal's time serving the Crown coming to a close during the invasion upon the Burning Throne, he was offered a special re-enlistment promise that if he continued his exemplary service he would be promoted to the rank of Grand Marshal as a result of the heavy losses incurred by Alliance forces upon the Broken Isles and Argus. With this promotion, the Grand Marshal commands the 4th Army into battle. Second Alliance Legion of Valor Once again, Alexander displayed another feat of valor during the War against the Burning Legion. Soon after he rejoined the Alliance war effort, his actions saved hundreds of his men as they battled on the frontlines against the demons. On the 27th of July in the year 38 LC, he was presented before King Anduin Wrynn where he was presented with his second Legion of Valor. Category:Order of Everstill Category:Stormwindian